What do you do when the rules don't allow something?

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

The simulationist in me cries out that an intelligent, powerful foe (especially a mastermind type of enemy) would take care to minimize their weaknesses and maximize their advantages. From a purely "common sense" point of view, I can't see a reason why a flying critter with a breath weapon would limit its mobility to the rough equivalent to its foes.

The entertainer in me also realizes that your job is to fundamentally entertain your players. If you think that they'd be entertained by a ferocious melee, you've just got to figure out a reason why to make it plausible (if such things matter to you and your group). I'd suggest that you view this as an opportunity to develop story or add layers onto your plot.

Here's a few ideas. Feel free to use and abuse as you see fit.

• The forest is within the hunting grounds of a tribe of elves. They would love to see the dragon defeated, but they simply don't have the melee beaters to directly engage it--they specialize in hit-and-run tactics themselves. Their hunters have devised a harpoon designed to tear away large sections of wing from such creatures. They will gladly provide the characters with these harpoons, which can be used in the first round to tear off the dragon's wings.

• The characters can convince the local lord to re-take a border tower and fortify it, using it as a base to attack the dragon from. This is a ruse, of course. What the characters are really up to is luring the dragon inside the tower, where its flight is useless once they slam the portcullis closed.

• You can have the characters visit a shaman/druid/witch/whatever, an isolated mystic that dwells within the forest. The mystic feels threatened by the dragon, having perhaps battled it in the past or working against its machinations. Perhaps after performing a service for this mystic (another adventure!), the mystic enacts a powerful ritual to rouse the spirits of the storm and the eternal winds. When the characters battle the dragon, these spirits slam the dragon back to the ground if it tries to fly.

Alternatively, the Elves might actually be of aid - they hide around the Dragons lair and aim at him with their bows. So his best bet is to move across the ground and get these bastards where they can't all shoot at him. He knows he can easily beat a group of Elves in melee, but if they are spread around, his breath weapon is of little use and they can all focus their fire on him.

What he doesn't know is that the PCs are planning to intercept him.

This way, the Dragon can choose to fly - but he is attacked by a barrage of arrows every time he does. (Ruleswise, this might work like a hazard or trap - or maybe more than one, to be "dangerous enough".)

You might not be able to negate the Dragons flight entirely (he must logically reach a minimum height to be targettable by those Archers), but it keeps him close enough for lots of attacks to work.

 

[Raven Crowking]

Couldn't you just wait until it gets close enough, and then CAGI it to the ground?

 

[Mallus]

Couldn't you just wait until it gets close enough, and then CAGI it to the ground?

You know that would make a terrific scene, don't you? A knight in shining armor beckoning to a dragon while uttering the challenge "Your Serpent Style is no match for my St. George Kung-Fu!"

 

[Jack99]

Thats a problem for your players, not for you.
Play the dragon as it would act and let the players figure out how to deal with it.

Generally, reserve the smart monsters for players who are willing to play smart. If they are not, stick to monsters which willingly come to the PCs to be hacked apart like undead and demons.

I have been thinking about one thing. In your campaigns, do your players ever survive (combat)encounters with dragons or do they always end up in the belly of the beast or running of to the hills, screaming like kobolds?

Just curious..

 

[GnomeWorks]

I have been thinking about one thing. In your campaigns, do your players ever survive (combat)encounters with dragons or do they always end up in the belly of the beast or running of to the hills, screaming like kobolds?

Not everything you run into is meant to be a "level-appropriate" encounter.

 

[Celebrim]

I didn't read the whole thread, so maybe someone suggested this, but if you don't want the dragon to use optimal tactics, tactically constrain the dragon.

It doesn't do 'hit and run tactics', because its defending its eggs.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Not everything you run into is meant to be a "level-appropriate" encounter.

Yes. Sometimes you might even fight a weak, low level dragon, for example.

 

[Kzach]

Not that it matters since the intention was to create discussion not to find a solution, but I ended up going with the suggestions here to provide clues that there's a dragon behind the machinations in the area, throughout the encounters that lead up to it. I also liked the idea of previous locations that have been cleared out by the PC's being potential traps that the PC's can use.

The tools are there, the knowledge is there, it's up to the players to figure out the solution and/or use what's provided to defeat the dragon. The dragon wants to live a long and prosperous life and so he isn't about to fall on just anyone's sword

 

[Starfox]

As a dragon learned last session in my game, the PCs now have lots of tools to prevent escape. A Fighter especially is VERY sticky. Basically, once a solo skirmisher is engaged by a fighter, it is screwed. Which turns the challenge for your players into one of getting the dragon close.

Of course, this is 4 ed. In earlier games, it was indeed very hard to tie down a foe, but then melee fighters in earlier can use strength bows.

 

[Raven Crowking]

You know that would make a terrific scene, don't you? A knight in shining armor beckoning to a dragon while uttering the challenge "Your Serpent Style is no match for my St. George Kung-Fu!"

Whether it does or not, the point is that the 4e ruleset seems to have an answer for this problem.



RC